The Saffron Gatherers Painting

Chris has worked as a muralist and trompe l'oeil artist for over 30 years for both commercial and domestic clients. His work has taking him around the UK and also to Europe and Africa. He is the author of two instructional books on mural & trompe l'oeil painting techniques, "Trompe L'Oeil Interiors" and "The Trompe L'Oeil Bible", both published by Northern Light (USA) and David & Charles (UK). His TV work includes contributions to interior design and home makeover shows on both BBC1 and ITV1. His fresco fragment panels came about from his love of re-creating ancient artworks from the classical Graeco-Roman world directly onto the walls in peoples homes. The way the ancient frescos have aged and deteriorated over thousands of years have given them a timeless beauty. Chris makes use of his trompe l'oeil skills to age, fade, crumble and crack his fresco reproductions. Working onto MDF gives him a lot of flexibility as the material can be cut, shaped, carved, gouged, textured as well as painted. His art pieces are designed to be hung frameless on the wall with fixings provided. They are made to be tactile as much as visual - each piece has been given numerous coats of flat matt acrylic varnish that also contains UV filter protection. *trompe l'oeil is a French term that translates as "deceive the eye". These painting techniques are designed to trick the viewer into perceiving a painted two-dimensional surface as if it's in three-dimensions.